16 Mo. Old Will Not Eat

I think it's great that you're going to a specialist...I'm sure you'll get lots of answers. I only have one thing to add and that is I was recently talking to a friend and she said her son (who's 4) eats, but his favorites are things like cottage cheese, appleasauce...things that go down easily and the docs think it may have something to do with the size of his tonsils. Basically they think he wants to eat, but doens't b/c it's painful. I know your child is younger, but if there's pain, that could be the culprit. Maybe just mention that to doctor, although I'm sure they'll look for all kinds of things like that! Good luck I'm sure it's nervewracking!

If HE wants to put it in his mouth, then just let him do it himself! I think it will help the situation a lot if he is allowed to play with his food and feed himself. It does not matter how much he actually eats, at first. Just let him play and feed himself.
Ours is a long story but, in short I can say that we also had eating problems with my son and even took him to pediatric ENT and the swallowing test you mention. There was nothing physically wrong with him. Things got sooo much better for us when we started NOT forcing eating at all and letting him play with his food. It did not happen overnight of course but in time it got way better.
You can give him a spoon to do whatever he wants, and help him with a second spoon. But never force, and get no emotions involved if he is not eating. And let him taste whatever he is interested in, which is usually mommy's food :-) I actually got him to start eating more by eating it myself and not offering him, then he would want to taste "mommy's" food.
Good luck, I hope things will get better soon!

Hi J.,
I have known kids like this before. There are things you can do to help. I imagine the doctor will bring this up, but if he/she doesn't, you can get a referral to a pediatric occupational therapist or speech therapist who works with swallowing/feeding issues. You may have to go to Jackson or another larger city to find one, but it should be worth it. Some toddlers can be really sensitive in their mouths and particular about what they will put in. In the meantime, I'd suggest you try to find a "Nuk" stick. They are cheap, but sometimes hard to find. Check Walgreen's or CVS or someplace like that in the baby aisle. It looks like a small stick with bumps on one end and you help the child to chew on it. The pressure it gives on the teeth helps prepare for chewing and swallowing. Since it is a stick, don't let your child have it without you watching.
I've also watched the swallowing tests (fluoroscopy) before and they are usually not bad. Usually, your child will drink a liquid and then they will try to have him eat and watch what happens on a video screen. Bring along some of what he will eat in case they don't have those there. Good luck!

Hi J.,
We also did this test with our now 2 year old daughter. It was fine, no problems and it's really not a difficult test, other than keeping your child as still as possible for a few minutes. (I know, easier said than done!) I wouldn't stress it though, it's not a big deal.
I really don't have alot of answers for you as we are stuggling with the very same thing as you. I will say, you might look into seeing someone who specializes in "sensory disorders." Or at least google "SPD" online and see if your child fits any oth the descriptions at all. Our docs and specialists are thinking that our daughter has this and all it is, is basically the way a child takes in information through the 5 senses. There is sometimes a brain disconnect between the outside info they receive and then how they respond to that. If your child is over-sensitive for example, and there is a more technical term for it that I can't remember, eating will be an issue for him. Our daughter still can't eat meat without gagging and will only eat soft or pureed foods. She has a specialist that comes every week to help her learn how to talk and eat etc.
With help from a specialist, they tell me that they can grow out of these issues. Take heart, if that's what you have to do it's really not the end of the world. We've received alot of help from our guy. Some kids just need some extra help and if there isn't anything physically wrong with his eating organs, places like "SoonerStart" will help your family for free.

Relax and take a deep breath. The dr will have some good answers for you. If something is going on that's good to know. Don't think of it as a negative. You can't address a problem if you don't know what it is. Whether there is anything going on or not I am sure the dr will have some good advice. All I can tell you for now is humans have a survival instinct. He won't starve himself. If his diet is mostly liquid, make him fruit smoothies or add in some pediasure. Don't offer things that have no nutritional value. If he has a hunger you don't want to trick his body with stuff that is nutritionally bankrupt.

The test you are doing sounds like a swallow test. My daughter did this test and it was not a hard test. They do have to sit still and then you feed them some stuff that shows up on an x-ray machine. I'm sure it will be nice to get some answers, and they will probably be able to give you some great ideas on how to encourage him to eat.